Pacifico

Beer: Pacifico Clara
Style: Pale Lager
Brewing location: Mexico City
Originating country: Mexico
Alcohol by Volume: 4.5% 
Ingredients: filtered water, malted barley, hops, corn and yeast
Format tested: 12 oz. bottle purchased in Los Angeles, CA USA
Beeradvocate rating: 2.69/5
Ratebeer rating: 4/100
Test kit: E-Z Gluten

Miscellaneous

• Cerveza Pacífico is named so because the Pacífico brewery is located in the Pacific Ocean port city of Mazatlán, in the state of Sinaloa, México.
• It was first brewed in 1900 when three Germans opened a brewery, the Cerveceria del Pacífico, in Mazatlán.
• "Clara" means clear, blonde, as opposed to "oscura" (dark).
• Its label includes a picture depicting a lifesaver encompassing a hill with the port's lighthouse hill, known locally as "Cerro del Crestón."

Test results photo

Test result

Negative at 20 parts per million (ppm), meaning it is less than 20 ppm gluten. Though standards vary from country to country, according to the FDA, "in order to use the term 'gluten free' on its label a food must meet all the requirements of the definition, including that the food must contain less than 20 ppm gluten".  It is said that products with a gluten content below 20 ppm are suitable for people with celiac disease.

My experience drinking Pacifico

One of those perfectly decent Mexican lagers. I'm sure it's nobody's "go to" beer but one of those beers you'll happily have with Mexican food. I am not sure where I fall in the gluten tolerance spectrum. I definitely know what it feels like to be "glutened" i.e. gluten exposure, but I have not deliberately pushed my gluten consumption limits with any food or beer. I had no noticeable reaction drinking this 12 oz. bottle in around one hour.

Firestone Pivo Pils

Beer: Firestone Pivo Pils

Style: German Pilsener

Brewing location: Paso Robles, CA

Originating country: USA

Alcohol by Volume: 5.3% 

Ingredients: malted barley, hops, yeast and water

Format tested: 12 oz bottle purchased in Paso Robles, CA

Beeradvocate rating: 89/100

Ratebeer rating: 92/100

Test kit: E-Z Gluten

Miscellaneous

• Firestone Walker Brewing Company is a brewery in Paso Robles, Central Coast California, and Buellton, California.
• The company utilizes a patented variation of the Burton Union system developed in England in the 1800s in its oak barrel fermentation process.
• Firestone Walker, which was World Beer Cup Champion Brewery for mid-sized breweries in 2004, 2006, 2010, and 2012, was the sixteenth largest craft brewery in the U.S. in beer sales volume in 2014.
• Firestone Walker Brewing Company was formed in 1996 in Santa Barbara County by Adam Firestone, son of Brooks Firestone and great-great grandson of Harvey Firestone who started the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company, and his brother-in-law David Walker.
• July 2015, it was announced that Duvel Moortgat would be acquiring a stake in Paso Robles, California craft brewer Firestone Walker Brewing Company.

Test result photo

Test result

Very High Positive at 20 parts per million (ppm), meaning it is more than 20 ppm. Though standards vary from country to country, according to the FDA, "In order to use the term 'gluten free' on its label a food must meet all the requirements of the definition, including that the food must contain less than 20 ppm gluten."  It is said that products with a gluten content below 20 ppm are suitable for people with celiac disease.

My experience drinking Firestone Pivo Pils

US craft brew lagers have failed to impress me so far. This is a very good effort though; distinctly hoppy but not overly so. Serve ICE cold in a Tom Collins glass.

I am not sure where I fall in the gluten tolerance spectrum; I am gluten intolerant but not celiac. I definitely know what it feels like to be “glutened” i.e. gluten exposure, but I have not deliberately pushed my gluten consumption limits with any food or beer. I consumed this 12 oz bottle and felt none of my typical gluten effects.